Symphony No. 2 (Berwald)
Encyclopedia
Franz Berwald
completed the Symphony No. 2 in D major, "Capricieuse," on June 18, 1842, in Nyköping
. The original score has been lost since the 1850s. In 1909, the Franz Berwald Foundation commissioned Ernst Ellberg to reconstruct the score from 4-stave sketches containing indications for orchestration. Ellberg's reconstruction was published in 1913 and first performed on January 9, 1914. Towards the end of the century, Nils Castegren reviewed Ellberg's reconstruction and published an "urtext" for Bärenreiter
.
Ellberg's reconstruction calls for 2 flute
s, 2 oboe
s, 2 clarinet
s, 2 bassoon
s, 4 horn
s, 2 trumpet
s, tenor trombone
, 2 bass trombones, timpani
and string
s. While Berwald gave clear indications for the woodwinds and strings, such as "detailed notations ... indicating when certain wind instruments play in unison with the respective string parts or in a different octave," where he wanted brass and/or timpani, Berwald would merely write the names of the instruments. However, Berwald did indicate the tuning and register of the brass and timpani at the beginning of each movement.
The work is in three movements,
and lasts about 29 and a half minutes per Berwald's indications of duration (from which metronome markings could be extrapolated).
, Okko Kamu
conducts the Helsingborg Symphony Orchestra on a disc that also includes the Symphony No. 1 in G minor, "Sérieuse," and the overture to Estrella de Soria. Thomas Dausgaard
with the Danish National Symphony Orchestra
on Chandos Records
also includes the "Serieuse" but opts for Erinnerung an die Norwegischen Alpen instead of an overture to fill out the disc.
The "Capricieuse" is also available in 2-disc sets of Berwald's four symphonies, such as David Montgomery
's set with the Jena Philharmonic on Arte Nova and Sixten Ehrling
's set with the Malmö Symphony Orchestra
on BIS. Roy Goodman
with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
on Hyperion Records
includes, besides the four completed symphonies, a fragment of a Symphony in A major and two opera overtures.
Franz Berwald
Franz Adolf Berwald was a Swedish Romantic composer who was generally ignored during his lifetime. He made his living as an orthopedic surgeon and later as the manager of a saw mill and glass factory....
completed the Symphony No. 2 in D major, "Capricieuse," on June 18, 1842, in Nyköping
Nyköping
Nyköping is a locality and the seat of Nyköping Municipality, Södermanland County, Sweden with 32,427 inhabitants in 2005. The city is also the capital of Södermanland County.- History :...
. The original score has been lost since the 1850s. In 1909, the Franz Berwald Foundation commissioned Ernst Ellberg to reconstruct the score from 4-stave sketches containing indications for orchestration. Ellberg's reconstruction was published in 1913 and first performed on January 9, 1914. Towards the end of the century, Nils Castegren reviewed Ellberg's reconstruction and published an "urtext" for Bärenreiter
Bärenreiter
Bärenreiter is a German classical music publishing house based in Kassel. The firm was founded by Karl Vötterle in Augsburg in 1923, and moved to Kassel in 1927, where it still maintains headquarters; it also has offices in Basel, London, New York and Prague...
.
Ellberg's reconstruction calls for 2 flute
Flute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
s, 2 oboe
Oboe
The oboe is a double reed musical instrument of the woodwind family. In English, prior to 1770, the instrument was called "hautbois" , "hoboy", or "French hoboy". The spelling "oboe" was adopted into English ca...
s, 2 clarinet
Clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument of woodwind type. The name derives from adding the suffix -et to the Italian word clarino , as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet. The instrument has an approximately cylindrical bore, and uses a single reed...
s, 2 bassoon
Bassoon
The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family that typically plays music written in the bass and tenor registers, and occasionally higher. Appearing in its modern form in the 19th century, the bassoon figures prominently in orchestral, concert band and chamber music literature...
s, 4 horn
Horn (instrument)
The horn is a brass instrument consisting of about of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. A musician who plays the horn is called a horn player ....
s, 2 trumpet
Trumpet
The trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
s, tenor trombone
Trombone
The trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...
, 2 bass trombones, timpani
Timpani
Timpani, or kettledrums, are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum, they consist of a skin called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionally made of copper. They are played by striking the head with a specialized drum stick called a timpani stick or timpani mallet...
and string
String section
The string section is the largest body of the standard orchestra and consists of bowed string instruments of the violin family.It normally comprises five sections: the first violins, the second violins, the violas, the cellos, and the double basses...
s. While Berwald gave clear indications for the woodwinds and strings, such as "detailed notations ... indicating when certain wind instruments play in unison with the respective string parts or in a different octave," where he wanted brass and/or timpani, Berwald would merely write the names of the instruments. However, Berwald did indicate the tuning and register of the brass and timpani at the beginning of each movement.
The work is in three movements,
- Allegro
- Andante
- Allegro assai
and lasts about 29 and a half minutes per Berwald's indications of duration (from which metronome markings could be extrapolated).
Discography
On Naxos RecordsNaxos Records
Naxos Records is a record label specializing in classical music. Through a number of imprints, Naxos also releases genres including Chinese music, jazz, world music, and early rock & roll. The company was founded in 1987 by Klaus Heymann, a German-born resident of Hong Kong.Naxos is the largest...
, Okko Kamu
Okko Kamu
Okko Kamu is a Finnish orchestral conductor.Kamu was born into a family of musicians. His father played double bass in the Helsinki Philharmonic. He began violin studies at age two and entered the Sibelius Academy at age six. He formed his own string quartet, the Suhonen, in 1964 where he played...
conducts the Helsingborg Symphony Orchestra on a disc that also includes the Symphony No. 1 in G minor, "Sérieuse," and the overture to Estrella de Soria. Thomas Dausgaard
Thomas Dausgaard
Thomas Dausgaard , is a Danish conductor.Since 1997, Dausgaard has been Principal Conductor of the Swedish Chamber Orchestra. From 2001-2004, he was Principal Guest Conductor of the Danish National Symphony Orchestra , and became principal conductor in 2004, the first Danish conductor to hold the...
with the Danish National Symphony Orchestra
Danish National Symphony Orchestra
The Danish National Symphony Orchestra , is a Danish orchestra based in Copenhagen. The DNSO is the principal orchestra of DR...
on Chandos Records
Chandos Records
Chandos Records is an independent classical music recording company based in Colchester, Essex, in the United Kingdom, founded in 1979 by Brian Couzens.- Background :...
also includes the "Serieuse" but opts for Erinnerung an die Norwegischen Alpen instead of an overture to fill out the disc.
The "Capricieuse" is also available in 2-disc sets of Berwald's four symphonies, such as David Montgomery
David Montgomery
David Montgomery is Farnam Professor of History Emeritus at Yale University. Montgomery is considered one of the foremost academics specializing in United States labor history and has written extensively on the subject. Along with David Brody and Herbert Gutman, he is credited with founding the...
's set with the Jena Philharmonic on Arte Nova and Sixten Ehrling
Sixten Ehrling
Sixten Ehrling, , was a Swedish conductor who, during a long career, served as the music director of the Royal Swedish Opera and the principal conductor of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, amongst others....
's set with the Malmö Symphony Orchestra
Malmö Symphony Orchestra
The Malmö Symphony Orchestra is a Swedish orchestra, based in Malmö. Since 1985, the orchestra has given its main concert series in the Konserthuset, Malmö. The orchestra has a current complement of 94 musicians...
on BIS. Roy Goodman
Roy Goodman
Roy Goodman is a conductor and violinist, specialising in the performance and direction of early music...
with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra is a radio orchestra based in Stockholm, Sweden, and affiliated with Sveriges Radio . The orchestra broadcasts concerts on the Swedish Radio-P2 network....
on Hyperion Records
Hyperion Records
Hyperion Records is an independent British classical record label.-History:The company was named after Hyperion, one of the Titans of Greek mythology. It was founded by George Edward Perry, widely known as "Ted", in 1980. Early LP releases included rarely recorded 20th century British music by...
includes, besides the four completed symphonies, a fragment of a Symphony in A major and two opera overtures.